5 picks (6 picks for Queen's): 1 pick per round

7 picks: 1 pick per day, and then 1 pick per round

Welcome to the second event of the 2013 ATP Sudden Death League season: Rotterdam

Rules of the game:

1. Everyday the OoP will be posted. You pick one player from the OoP that you think is going to win that day. It is a knockout system: if he wins, you advance to the next day. If he loses, you're eliminated from the game.

2. Up to the Quarter-Finals, you have to pick one player per day based on the daily OoP. From the quarter-finals onward, you make one pick per round.

3. You can pick a player only ONCE. Obviously it's important to make smart choices in order to get far. If you have no picks remaining, you're eliminated from the competition.

4. You can't pick a player from a match that has started already.

5a. If the player you picked retires during the match, you're out. If he forfeits before the match begins, you're allowed to change your pick.

5b. If the opponent of the player you picked retires (or wins by walkover), it counts like a win. However, you won't be able to pick that player for the remainder of the tournament.

6. NEVER edit your pick. If you want to change your pick, please quote your old pick and choose a new player. Edited posts will not be taken into consideration.

IN. I think 7 picks may be too much for a 500 events, after all I believed we used 7 picks last season and people found it harder to win these than win the grand slams especially with the smaller fields.

IN. I think 7 picks may be too much for a 500 events, after all I believed we used 7 picks last season and people found it harder to win these than win the grand slams especially with the smaller fields.

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yeppers. plus the extra time spent dealing with these smaller events making picks every day is problematic for folks that don't always get on the 'puter for these sorts of things...

Well that's mainly because there weren't that many upsets, which is very unusual for Australia.

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Plus using the predictability of a Slam to forecast the predictability of 500 events like Rotterdam/Memphis makes absolutely no sense given how lacking in depth the fields will be. With possibly the sole exception of Dubai, these events will be seeded by largely 2nd-tier players who are far more inconsistent than the top players at Slams.

Smaller fields and fewer points up for grabs (combined with generally more difficult predictions) makes it logical for the 500s to require fewer correct picks than M1000s.

So based on the poll results, all ATP250 and 500 events will be on a round-by-round basis. For all 32-size draws, it will be 5 picks. For all 48/56 size draws (Barcelona, Queen's Club), it will be 6 picks.